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FOREWORD

Guidance material on Flight Data Analysis (FDA) was initially contained in the first edition of the Safety Management Manual (SMM) (Doc 9859), Chapter 16, 16.3. This material was incorporated into the first edition of this manual in 2013 in order to highlight the importance of establishing an FDA programme (FDAP).

The content of the manual was based on the initial text in Doc 9859 and was updated with the following content changes:

a) improved description of the relationship between the safety management system (SMS) and an FDAP; an FDAP is an effective tool for the safety assurance component of air operators;

b) improved description of safety culture in relation to a non-punitive system, safety culture in general and duty-of-care;

c) adoption of a systematic and comprehensive approach to describing an FDAP. In particular, FDAP processes are redrafted to be coherent and appropriately aligned with the safety risk management principles as contained in the SMM; and

d) a more detailed description is provided of the composition of the FDA team and a description of the key objectives for an effective relationship between the FDA team and management rather than proposing a specific method.

Following the publication of the first edition in 2013, additional work was conducted to identify industry best practice and to further develop the actions required by States to enhance the implementation of FDAPs, leading to the development of the second edition. The material related to safety information protection has also been updated in line with changes on safety data and safety information protection included in Amendment 1 to Annex 19 — Safety Management.

Comments on this manual, particularly with respect to its application and usefulness, are appreciated. These comments will be taken into consideration in the preparation of subsequent editions. Comments concerning this manual should be addressed to: